Yeast can only eat some types of sugars. It can't eat starches or other complex carbohydrates. You'll particularly hear people talk about "dextrins" which are long chain carbohydrates that add thickness or "mouthfeel" to the beer.

On a side note: The job of the "mash" is to release enzymes to convert the barley starches into sugars that the yeast can eat.

got it..the the residuals are unfermentable sugars...thanks.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikethepoolguy

I started brewing 69 days ago, 35 gal so far. SWMBO hasnt complained yet! Better than the hookers, gambling, and crack I used to do, I guess.

Could someone explain "Overpitching", and the growth cycle. I had read in a thread about yeast washing that you should do a starter because otherwise the yeast spend too much energy just multiplying. Isn't this what yeast do to produce alcohol?

Could someone explain "Overpitching", and the growth cycle. I had read in a thread about yeast washing that you should do a starter because otherwise the yeast spend too much energy just multiplying. Isn't this what yeast do to produce alcohol?

Read this summary of the yeast life cycle from the BJCP Exam Study Guide and let me know if you have any questions.

When yeast are pitched into fresh wort, the overall process of fermentation can be divided into several stages, all of which are part of the life cycle. While these stages can each be described separately, the transitions between each are continuous and should not be thought of as distinct phases. Also the relative time spent in each phase depends on several factors including the composition of the wort, the environment and the amount of yeast pitched.

The first phase of the cycle is called the lag phase. During this time the yeast will adapt to the new environment they are now in and begin to make enzymes they will need to grow and ferment the wort. The yeast will be utilizing their internal reserves of energy for this purpose, which is the carbohydrate glycogen. The yeast will acclimatize itself and assess the dissolved oxygen level, the overall and relative amounts of the amino acids and the overall and relative amounts of sugars present. Some of these amino acids, small groups of amino acids called peptides, and sugars will be imported into the cell for cell division. Normally this period is very brief, but if the yeast is not healthy, this period can be very protracted, and ultimately lead to problematic fermentation (8,1).

Based on these factors, the yeast will then move into the next phase of the life cycle, the growth phase. During this time the yeast will start to divide by budding to reach the optimal density necessary for the true fermentation. If an adequate amount of healthy yeast has been pitched and the proper nutrients are present, there should only be one to three doublings of the initial innoculum. The oxygen that was used to aerate the wort is absorbed during this time to allow the yeast to generate sterols, which are key components of the cell wall (9). It has also been proposed that cold trub can provide the unsaturated fatty acids needed for sterol synthesis (10, 11). Furthermore, it has been proposed that if an adequate amount of yeast has been pitched, such that cell growth is not necessary, then the oxygenation is not necessary (9, 12). While this theory has not been completely accepted (13, 14), perhaps further research will elucidate other variables which may be involved in this phenomenon. This sterol synthesis is the default pathway used in an all malt wort; however if the wort contains greater than 0.4% glucose then this pathway will not be used and the yeast will instead ferment the glucose, even in the presence of oxygen. This effect is called glucose repression, or the Crabtree effect.

Following the growth phase, the low kraeusen phase of primary fermentation begins. During this time the yeast begins anaerobic metabolism, since all of the oxygen has now been depleted. This is characterized by a foam wreath, which has previously existed on the sides, now migrating to the center of the surface. The yeast have now completely adapted to the condition of the wort and transport of both amino acids and sugars into the cells for metabolism will be very active. During this period fusel alcohols and diacetyl can be produced. To minimize the formation of fusel alcohols, one should try to keep the temperature down, make sure that adequate dextrinous sugars are available, and minimize the amount of hot trub present in the yeast cake. To minimize the diacetyl in the finished beer, one should try to avoid the reintroduction of oxygen, excessive cooling of the fermentation in later stages and premature removal of the yeast.

At the high kraeusen stage following this, an ale yeast will have metabolized most of the sugars present in the wort. A lager yeast, on the other hand, may still be in the growth phase while also reducing the extract by four gravity points/day. Lager yeast will be metabolizing most of the sugars during the high kraeusen phase. Following this phase is the late kraeusen phase. In lager yeasts this can be very important, since it is during this time that the yeast begin to metabolize some of the fermentation by-products they had previously excreted during the low kraeusen phase. Specifically, a diacetyl rest may be performed to help with the re-absorption and subsequent reduction of the diacetyl and the related 2,3 pentanedione during this time. The temperature of the beer may be allowed to rise up to 68 °F. Generally as the extract reaches its terminal point the yeast will begin to flocculate out.

HOLY COW! I thought all they did was eat sugar and make babies.
Ok, here's a few questions.
1. How do you know if your yeast is helthy? (i assume it SHOULD be if you're buying it)
2. How do you know if you're pitching enough/too much yeast?
3. How/When do you perform a diacetyl rest?

Dont forget, the pee alcohol...
You can proof it(most dry packs have instructions on the back) or you can make a starter.http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html
Thats just a fancy term for "leave the beer in the fermenter for a few extra days." The only thing you have to do is be patient

We need to clarify a few things here.
1) How do you know if your yeast is healthy? Proofing is the way, but some dry yeast companies don't recommend proofing. You're essentially feeding your yeast junk food with absolutely NO nutritional value, which means they have to use their internal nutrition stores to process it. In effect, you just weakened your yeast in order to see how strong it is. Oops: Catch-22. First step is always to get your yeast from a good source that moves a lot of product (so its fresh). If it seems old, do a starter...dme is full of yummy nutrients, so a starter doesn't deplete the yeast.

2) How do you know how much to pitch? Yeah, use Mr. Malty. But, in general, a vial or pouch of liquid is not enough for a normal beer. A dry pack is...if properly rehydrated.

3) Diacetyl rest is not really just a fancy term for leaving the beer on the yeast a little longer, its a fancy term for raising the temp of your fermentation a bit. This is mostly something that people do with lagers, so if you're just doing ales, I wouldn't even worry about it. But, if you're interested in lagers, here's what John Palmer says in his lager section of How to Brew:
"To remove any diacetyl that may be present after primary fermentation, a diacetyl rest may be used. This rest at the end of primary fermentation consists of raising the temperature of the beer to 55-60 °F for 24 - 48 hours before cooling it down for the lagering period. This makes the yeast more active and allows them to eat up the diacetyl before downshifting into lagering mode."

I'm splitting hairs here a bit...the person above is right that diacetyl usually only becomes a problem if you take the beer off the yeast too quickly. (Btw, diacetyl (like many off-flavors) is an intermediary compound released during fermentation.)

Thanks for all the great info. I should have bought it soon, but I do have Palmer's book on order from Amazon as no one in town caries it. God, we need a good book store in the wonderful city of Decatur.
FYI incase anyone is looking for some good How-to/Beer-Brew books, Amazon has a special...spend $25 get free shipping. I ordered via Amazon, cause i'm only spending $7 more, and getting two books.

It's great that you're buying it, because it's really nice to have in-hand (and I'm sure Palmer appreciates the royalties)...but he also put the whole book (I think it's the whole book) online: http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html